Soft drinks group Britvic said Wednesday it had agreed to a merger with rival A.G. Barr to form a new company with annual sales of more than £1.5 billion.
“The (all-share) merger of A.G. Barr and Britvic will create a world class soft drinks company,” Britvic non-executive chairman Gerald Corbett said in a statement.
“A.G. Barr and Britvic are a fantastic fit with complementary strengths… and we will benefit from very significant synergies,” he added.
The pair’s combined market value stood at about £1.4 billion at the close of trading on Tuesday. The new company will be called Barr Britvic Soft Drinks PLC.
Scotland-based A.G. Barr is famed for making fizzy drink Irn-Bru, while Britvic produces J20 and Robinsons juices.
Britvic, which also makes Tango and Lipton Ice Tea, will own 63 percent of the new group, with the rest held by A.G. Barr, which also produces the carbonated drink Orangina and Rubicon exotic juice drinks.
Britvic meanwhile has exclusive bottling agreements with Pepsi in Britain and Ireland to manufacture and distribute Pepsi, Pepsi Max and 7UP.
“The merger will create one of the leading soft drinks companies in Europe, with annual sales of over £1.5 billion, a portfolio of strong brands and significant prospects for future growth,” Britvic said in Wednesday’s statement.
“The boards of A.G. Barr and Britvic believe that the combined group will be able to achieve recurring annual cost synergies of approximately £35 million,” it added.
Britvic had announced on September 5 that it was in talks with A.G. Barr regarding a merger.
Britvic announces merger with soft drinks rival Barr
